Multi-use paint tray

ABSTRACT

A multi-use paint tray is disclosed wherein means are provided for positioning the tray into various positions ranging from a vertical position to a horizontal position on a flat surface, a ladder having rungs or a step ladder. A tray insert means is included for stowing tools such as paint brushes ready for use in all of the aforesaid positions away from a bottom wall of the paint tray which wall is primarily used for draining paint from paint applicators.

United States Patent Golden et al.

[54] MULTI-USE PAINT TRAY [72] Inventors: Henry Golden; Samuel R. Genca,

both of Rochester, NY.

[73] Assignee: Tray-X Corporation, Rochester,

[22] Filed: Dec. 11, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 97,252

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 884,127, Dec. 11,

1969, Pat. NO. 3,625,388.

[52] US. Cl ..220/1 R, 248/110, 248/210, 248/226 B, 248/226 E, 15/257.06, 285/85 R [51] Int. Cl. ..E06c 7/14 [58] Field of Search ..15/257.05, 257.06, 104.92; 206/151 R, 15.1 A, 15.1 B, 15.1 C, 15.1 D, 15.1E,15.1F, 72; 211/65; 248/110-113;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,625,388 12/1971 Golden et al. ..220/l R [1 1 3,707,242 51 Dec.26, 1972 3,252,613 5/1966 McGrath ..15/257.05 X 3,474,996 10/1969 Stamm ..248/210 1,536,468 5/1925 Behrman ..248/110 X 2,646,808 7/1953 Yenne ..15/104.92 2,759,620 8/1956 Pharris ..15/257.06 1,008,856 11/1911 Mosher ..248/113 X 3,495,683 2/1970 Broden ..248/210 2,661,858 12/1953 Howell .....15/257.06 X 2,535,260 12/1950 Braswell... ....248/113 X 1,622,058 3/1927 Sohnle ..248/113 Primary Examiner-William H. Schultz Attorney-Samuel R. Genca s1 v ABSTRACT A multiuse paint tray is disclosed wherein means are provided for positioning the tray into various positions ranging from a vertical position to a horizontal position on a flat surface, a ladder having rungs or a step ladder. A tray insert means is included for stowing tools such as paint brushes ready for use in all of the aforesaid positions away from a bottom wall of the paint tray which wall is primarily used for draining paint from paint applicators.

2 Clairns, 23 Drawing Figures PAIENTEDBEB26 1972 2 sum 1 OF 4 Fig.

INVENTORS PATENTED 1972 3. 707.242

SHEET 3 BF 4 INVENTORS HENRY GOLDEN SAMUEL R. GENCA MULTl-USE PAINT TRAY CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation-in-part of our earlier filed application Ser. No. 884,127, filed Dec. ll, I969 and issued on Dec. 7, l97l as US. Pat. No. 3,625,388.

In the aforesaid application, there is disclosed a paint tray having means for positioning the tray into various 1 positions ranging from a vertical position to a horizontal position on a ladder.

The present invention relates to an improved multiuse paint tray having means for stowing tools, paint brushes and other implements within the paint tray for use therewith throughout the aforesaid positions to provide a more efficient use of the paint tray and the aforesaid tools, paint brushes and other implements.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of Invention The present invention relates generally to a utility device and more particularly to a novel paint tray.

Although the. present invention is suited for more general applications such as a tool holding device, it is particularly adapted for use as a paint tray or recepta- Cle.

2. Prior Art Prior art paint receptacles or trays of the open topped type for paint roller type applicators and flat applicators are well known to those skilled in the art. Such receptacles or paint trays have a shallow end and a deep end with an inclined portion interconnecting the two ends to define a portion where excess paint may be removed from the roller applicator and flat applicator. The excess paint flows to the deep end by the force of gravity.

Generally, paint trays of this'type have been successfully used when mounted on horizontal surfaces or step ladders in a substantially horizontal position. Attempts have been made to utilize such prior art paint trays on ladders having rungs; however, a major problem of long standing exists since the open topped pan must be maintained substantially horizontal to avoid spilling paint. The problem is even more critical when the ladder must be moved sideways while held in an upright manner to a new position while the open topped pan is mounted on the ladder. Prior art attempts have included complicated expensive mounting devices which have been cumbersome to use or necessitated the paint tray to be mounted on the ladder in positions which are awkward to use. Such prior art attempts do not provide for an efficient, inexpensive, quick and ready mounting of the paint tray on the ladder in different positions for use with paint brushes, paint rollers and flat paint applicators.

Further, such prior art attempts do not provide means for racking and stowing of paint brushes, tools and other implements for use with the paint tray. In other words, prior art paint trays are generally single purpose trays which are used for paint rollers or flat applicators. Thus other necessary tools and paint brushes SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly described, a paint tray in accordance with a 0 preferred embodiment of the invention includes a tray member having wall portions which-define a distal end or deep end and a proximal end or shallow end. The paint tray includes means for pivotally mounting the proximal end of the tray member on one rung of an upright ladder and a cover portion over the distal end of the tray member to define a cavity or receptacle for containing paint or other liquids therein. A tension means including a tension member such as a chain, rope, flexible member or the like is coupled to the distal end of the tray memberfor connecting the distal end of the tray member to another higher rung'of the ladder than the one rung so that the paint tray is hinge mounted on the one rung and supported from the other higher rung in any given desired position in a range of positions froma substantially horizontal position to a substantially vertical position.

A tray insert means is disposed within the receptacle interposed between the cover and the deep end of the tray so that tools, brushes and other implements may be racked or stowed thereon for ready use with tray without interfering with the normal use of the tray, and yet be readily available for use.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention, both as to its organization and method of operation, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like elements in the various figures have like designations and in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the paint tray in accordance with an embodiment of the invention positioned on an upright ladder;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the paint tray of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of the paint tray of FIG. I disposed in a horizontal position;

FIG. 4 shows the paint tray of FIG. 1 disposed in a vertical position;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another paint tray in accordance with another embodiment of the invention mounted on a ladder with parts broken away showing details of the paint tray;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view with parts broken away of the paint tray of FIG. 5 showing a bottom portion of the paint tray;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of yet another paint tray in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view with parts broken away of the paint tray of FIG. 7 showing a bottom portion of the paint tray;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a paint tray in accordance with another embodiment of the invention disassembled to more clearly show details of the paint tray;

FIG. is an insert device for use with the paint tray of FIG. 9; I

FIG. 1 l is a perspective view of the paint tray of FIG. 1 shown in a horizontal position'holding tools and a paint brush;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a multi-use paint tray in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention mounted on a ladder with parts broken away showing details of the multi-use paint tray;

FIG. 12a is an enlarged fragmentary view of the multi-use paint tray of FIG. 12;

FIG. 13 is a left vertical side view of the multi-use paint tray in a vertical position; I i

FIG. 14 is a right side view of the multi-use paint tray mounted in a horizontal position on a step ladder;

FIG. 15 is a side view of the multi-use paint tray mounted on a ladder and displayed inv two different of a detail positions;

FIG. 16 is a top plan view of the multi-use painttray FIG. 17 is a bottom plan view of the multi-use paint tray; 7

FIG. 18 is a front end view of the multi-use paint tray; 1

FIG. 19 is'a planned 'view of a tray insert used one multi-use paint tray of FIG. 12; FIG. 20 is a side view of the tray insert of FIG. 19;

FIG. 21 is a partial fragmentary bottom view of the multi-use paint tray, and

FIG. 22 is a rear end'view of the multi-use paint tray.

DETAILED IDESCRIPTION Referring to FIGS. l,2,3,4,6 and 11' of the drawing and in particular to FIG. 1, a paint tray 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention is shown mounted on an upright ladder 11 which is resting against a building 12. The ladder 11 includes at least two rungs, a lower rung 13 and an upper rung 14 disposed between spaced apart side rails 15,16. The ladder 11. may be of the extension type well known to those skilled in the art and forms no part of this inventron.

The paint tray 10 is particularly useful with a roller paint applicator, paint brush and flat paint applicator, however, it should be understood that the paint tray 10 may be used as a work tray for supporting tools such as but not limited to screw driver 1 10, pliers 1 l1 and paint brush 1 12 shown in FIG. 1 1.

The paint tray 10 includes a tray member 20 having side wall portions 21,22 connected to front wall portion 23 and a rear wall portion 24 which define a shallow proximal end 25 and a deep distal end 26 respectively of the paint ray 10.'The tray member 20 includes an inclined portion 27 which together with the side wall portions 21,22 front wall portion 23 and rear wall portion 24 form the shallow proximal end 25 and the deep distal end 26 of the paint tray 10. The inclined portion 27 includes raised ribs 28 which are useful in removing excess paint 8 from the'aforesaid paint roller or flat applicator. The excess paint 8 flows to the deep distal end 26 by the force of gravity.

In accordance with the invention, the paint tray 10 includes pivot means 40 at the proximal end 25 for pivotaliy mounting the paint tray 10 on a rung of the ladder 1 1. As shown in FIGS. 2,3,4 and 6, the paint tray 10 is pivotally mounted on the lower rung 13 between the side rails15,l6. The pivot means 40 includes a pair of spaced apart resilient brackets 41 each having a mounting portion 42 fixed to the proximal end 25 of the paint tray 10 and a curved gripping portion 43 for slideably embracing the rung 13 of the ladder 11. A guide portion 44 precedes the curved gripping portion 43 so that by merely forcing the paint tray 10 over the rung 13 of the ladder 11, the paint tray 10 may be pivotally fastened to the rung 13. While a pair of spring brackets are shown, it should be understood that the pivot means 40 may include a single relatively wide resilient bracket instead of the pair of resilient brackets 41. The pivot means 40 is positioned in cooperative relationship with the tray member 20 so that the tray may pivot about the rung 13while theladder 1 l is positioned against the building 12. The position of the pivot means 40 on the tray member 20 is a factor of the length of the tray member 20 and the ladder 11 upon which the paint tray 10 is used. If the paint tray 10 is desiredzshort and stubby, the pivot means 40-may be fixed nearer to the front wall portion 23; however, if a relatively long inciined portion 27 is desired, the pivot means 40 is spaced from the front wall portion23 so that the paint tray 10 may be pivoted on the rung 13' of the upright ladder 11. I I y The paint tray 10 includes an upper cover member 30 disposed over the deep distal end 26 in sealing relationship with the rear wall portion 24 and the side wall portions 21,22 such as by welding, soldering or plastic adhesive. The cover member 30 includes upper side wall portions 31,32 and a tapered upper rear wall portion 33 and top cover portion 35 which define a cavity or receptacle 34 at the distal end 26. The. cavityvor receptacle has an opening 36. The upper cover member 30 may be molded with the tray member 20. The molding material may be fiberglass, thermo setting plastics and other suitable molding material as shown in FIG. 9. The tapered rear wall portion 33 is positioned in cooperative relationship with the pivot means 40 so as not to interfere with the building 12 when the paint tray 10 is pivoted into various positions about the rung 13 on the pivot means 40.

.The cover member 30 includes a drip edge 37 which may be used for the removal of excess paint from the applicator aforementioned. It should be understood that edges 37,38 of upper side wall portions 31,32 respectively maybe used for the removal of the paint from the applicator. The opening 36 permits a ready access to paint 8 in the deep distal end 26 of the paint tray 10.

In accordance with the invention, the paint tray 10 includes a tension means 50 for supporting the distal end 26 of the paint tray 10 from the next higher rung, namely upper rung 14 in any number of selected positions from a substantially horizontal position as shown by the paint tray 10 as shown in dotted lines (F IG. 2) or in a vertical position (FIG. 4). The tension means 50 includes an eye bolt 51 fixed to the cover member 30, a chain 52 coupled to the eye bolt 51 at one end and fastening means such as a hook 53 fixed to the other end of the chain 52 at 54. The hook 53 and chain 52 couple the distal end 26 of the paint tray 10 to the rung 14 of the ladder 11 by a loop 55 of the chain 52. The length of the chain 52 between the upper rung 14 and the distal end 27 determines the pivot position of the paint tray on the rung 13. While a chain 52 is shown, it should be understood that other tension devices may be used such as a cable or rope 86 shown in FIG. 7.

In the operation of the paint tray,10, the pivot means 40 is coupled to the rung 13 of the ladder 11 by placing the inclined portion 27 on the rung and forcing the pivot means 40 over the rung 13. The paint tray 10 is then held to a desired position while the tension means is coupled to a higher rung 14 of the ladder 1 1 than the rung 13 as above mentioned. The chain 52 is looped around the rung to form the loop 55 and establish a given length of chain 52 between the rung 14 and the distal end 26 of the paint tray 10. The hook 53 is then fastened to the chain 52. The paint tray 10 is now in position for use (FIGS. 1-4).The paint tray 10 is thus supported on one rung 13 of the ladder 11 at the proximal end 25 in a hinge manner and is supported'in tensionat the distal end 26 by the relatively light chain member 52. The paint 8 in the distal end 26 of the paint tray 10 and the weight of the distal end 26 bias the paint tray 10 downward about the rung 13 (FIGS. L4) and thus apply a tensile force on the tension means 50. By utilizing the tensile force, lighter members such as chain 52 or rope 86 may be used to support the distal end 26 since bending and fiexure are not considerations for the design of the tension means 50. Further, the position of the paint tray 10 may easily be varied by the hook 53 and links of the chain 52 in tension means 50 to effect different positions of the paint tray 10 from the horizontal position (FIG. 3) to a vertical position (FIG. 4) within the dotted path 7. This may also be seen in FIG. 2 wherein the paint tray 10 may be moved to the horizontal position taken by a paint tray 10a about the rung 13 through the pivot means 40.

Referring now to FIG. 5, another paint tray 60 in accordance with another embodiment of the invention is shown. The paint tray 60 is similar to the paint tray 10 of FIGS. 14 except that a different cover arrangement is used in the paint tray 60. That is, the paint tray 60 includes a triangular wedge shaped cover portion 61 which defines a receptacle 62 which will contain a quantity of paint when the paint tray 60 is in the vertical position not to exceed the capacity of the paint tray 60 when the paint tray 60 is in a horizontal position. This will avoid the danger of spilling of paint 8 regardless of the various positions of the paint tray 60 from a vertical position to a horizontal position. The cover portion 61 is fastened in a sealing relationship to the paint tray 60 in a similar manner to that used in fastening the cover 30 to the paint tray 10 or may be crimped thereto at the flange 65. i

The cover 61 includes a mounting hole 63 for the tension means 50 used in the paint tray 10 so that the paint tray 60 may be supported from the upper rung 14 similar to the paint tray 10.

The paint tray 60 also includes the same pivot means 40 used in the paint tray 10 for hinge mounting the paint tray 60. The pivot means 40 is shown in greater detail in FIG. 6 and is used in paint trays 10,60 and 90.

The pair of spring brackets 41 is mounted in spaced relationship and fixed at the mounting portion 42 to the inclined portion 27 of the tray member 20 as by' welding, rivoting and the like. Another pivot means 77 is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, which pivot means may be used in paint trays 10,60 and 90 of FIGS. 1,5 and 9 respectively and will be described hereinafter.

Referring now to FIGS. 7 and 8, another paint tray in accordance with another embodiment of the inventionis shown. The paint tray 70 is similar to the paint tray 10, except that the pivot means 77, tension means 84 and a removeable cover member 71 are used instead of pivot means 40, tension means 50 and cover member 30. The cover member 71 may be of a resilient material and includes a sealing edge 72 which is in sealing relationship with the rear wall portion 73 and the side wall portions 74,75 at flange 69. The cover member 71 includes a raised edge portion 76 for accessibility between the side wall portions 74, and bottom portion 66 of the paint tray 70. The cover member 71 functions in the same manner as cover member 30 except that the tension means 84 is not coupled to the cover member 71. I

The cover member 71 prevents spilling of paint when the tray 70 is pivoted or moved while on the rung 13. The pivot means 77 is fixed to the bottom portion 66 for pivotally mounting the p'aintytray 70 to the rung 13 of the ladder l1 and also'for mounting the paint tray 70 to a step of a step ladder (not shown) when desired. The pivot means 77 includes a pair of spaced channel brackets 68,68a fixed to the bottom portion 66 of the paint tray 10 in a manner similar to the pivot means 40 of the paint tray 10. The bracket 68 includes legs 77,79 extending downward and are spaced apart to extend over the rung 13 of the ladder 11. A bolt or pin 81 is adapted to couple the legs 67,79 to the rung 13 in a pivotal manner so that the paint tray 70 may be pivoted about the rung 13. The bracket 68a is similar to the bracket 68 and also includes legs 67a and 79a which stradle the rung 13 in a pivotal manner similar to the bracket 68. A bolt or pin 81a locks the rung 13 to the pivot means 77. Thus the brackets 68, 68a and the pins 9 81, 81a provide the means through which the paint tray 81 may be pivoted about the rung 13 of the ladder 11. The paint tray 70 may also be mounted on. a step of a step ladder by the foot portions 77 and 77a which are adjustably fixed to the legs 67 and 67a respectively. The foot portions 78, 78a are fixed to the legs 67, 67a by wing nut bolts 81, 81a extending through elongated slots 83, 83a. The legs 79, 79a include a toothed portion 80, and a toothed portion 80a respectively which provide a gripping action on the step of the step ladder. it should be understood however that the toothed portions 80, 80a may be omitted, although it does provide a gripping action to fix the paint tray 70 on the step of the step ladder. The foot portions 78, 78a are spaced from the toothed portions 80, 80a respectively so that the aforesaid step of the step ladder may be interposed between the foot portions 78, 78a and the toothed portions 80, 80a and coupled to the foot portions 78, 7 8a. It may be seen that when the paint tray 70 is in this position, the toothed portions 80, 80a bite into the step and the foot portions 78, 78a prevent a pivoting of the paint tray 70 about the legs 79, 79a. In other words, the legs 79, 79a act as a fulcrum and the distal end 73 of the paint tray 70 is one end of an imaginary lever and the foot portions 78, 78a another end of the imaginary lever. It should also be understood that the foot portions 78, 78a may be adjusted to lock the paint tray 70 to the rung 13 in which case the pins 81, 81a are not necessary for pivotally mounting the paint tray 70 to the rung 13.

The paint tray 70 also includes a tension means 84 similar to the tension means 50 of the paint tray 10 (FIGS. 1-4), except that the tension means 84 includes a tension member such as a cable or rope S6, hooks 87,89 and a bracket 85 fixed to the rear wall portion 73. The hooks 87,89 are of the spring safety type and are disposed at opposite ends of the rope 86. The means 50 means 84 functions in the same manner as the tension means so except that the length of the rope 86 is varied by taking away or adding-more loops of rope 86 to effect different positions of the paint tray 70 about the rung 13 of the ladder 11. The hook 89-is coupled to the bracket 85 and rope 86.

The paint tray 70 operates in the same manner as the paint tray 10 except that] the cover member 71 is 'rernoveable and the pivot means 7 7 may be coupled to a step of a step ladder or to a rung 13 of a ladder 11 to mount the paint tray 70 thereto.

FIG. 9 shows another paint tray 90 in accordance with the invention particularly suited for various insertable tray devices such as the insert device 100 shown in FIG. l0' 'or the paint tray insert device 91. it should be understood of course that the paint tray 90 may be used without the insert devices 90, 100. The paint tray 90 includes a bottom portion 92, side wall portions 93, 94, a proximal or front wall portion 95, and a distal or real wall portion 96 which are positioned in cooperative relationship to form a deep distal end at 96 and a shallow proximal end at 95.

The paint tray 90 includes a bracket 97 fixed to the rear wall portion 96 as by welding, riveting or the like. The bracket 97 includes an alignment hole 98 for receiving and locating a tab 99 of the insert device 91. The bracket 97 and the tab 99 are also used for retaining the insert device 91 in the paint tray 90.

The paint tray 90 also includes the tension means 50 coupled to the bracket 97. The tension means 50 also functions with the paint tray 90 in the same way it functions for the paint tray 10.

The paint tray 90 also includes the pivot means 40 fixed to the bottom portion 92. The pivot means 40 also functions with paint tray 10. That is the clip or spring hook 53 may easily be coupled to the chain 52 as by hooking to the chain 52 or to any link within the chain 52 to form the loop 55 around the rung 14. The tension means 50 and the pivot means 40 provide an inexpensive, fast means for mounting the paint tray 90 to the rungs 13, 14 of the ladder 11.

The paint tray insert device 91 may be of the disposable or permanent type and may be cast or molded as a single unitary structure.

The insert device 91 includes a bottom portion 92a having ribs 114a, side wall portions 930:, 94a, a front wall portion 95a and a rear wall portion 96a all dimensioned so that the insert device 91 ismateable within the paint tray 90. The insert device 91 also includes ribs 114a corresponding to ribs 114 of paint tray 90 on the bottom portion 92 The paint tray 90 supports the insert device 91 so thatthe insert device 91 may be a thin shell member or if desired, the insert device 91 may be a rigid self-supporting structure which may include a pivot means 102 for pivotally mounting the insert device 91 to the rung 13 of the ladder l1 and be supported at a distal end at 96a by any one of the tension means 50 or 84 when coupled to the tab 99 at hole 101 and the upper rung 14 of the ladder 11. The paint tray insert device 91 includes a cover member 103 which functions in the same manner and is structurally similar to cover 30 of the paint tray 10.

1n the operation of the paint tray 90, the pivot means 40 is coupled to the rung 13 and the tension means 50 V is looped around an upper rung 14 of the ladder 11 in a desired horizontal position. The hook 53 is coupled at a given point along the length of the chain 52 to position the paint tray in the desired position. Generally, the paint tray is operated in a substantially horizontal position. If different vertical positions are desired, the paint insert device 91 is mounted within the paint tray 90 so that cover 103 confines paint at the distal end 96 of the paint tray 90 in a manner similar to paint tray 10. The paint tray 90 and insert device- 91 are pivoted about the rung 13 on pivot means 40 into the various positions.

' The'insert device is used with the paint tray 90 when compartments such as 104 and 108 are desired for holding tools or containing paint. The insert device 100 includes side wall portions 105, 107 and a rear portion 106 which are insertable with the side walls 93, 94 and rear wall portion 96 of paint tray 90. The insert device 100 may be molded of thin shell plastic such as by vacuum forming or may be a solid member of wood or other light plastic materials.

in H6. 11, the paint tray 10 is shown supporting or holding various tools such as a screw driver 110, pliers 111, and paint brush 112 which is held inplace by a spring clip 113 on the paint tray 10. This is particularly convenient when working with ladder 1 1.

The paint trays 10,60,70,90 and paint tray insert device 91 of the present invention may be used on a horizontal surface, a step ladder and a ladder having rungs. The paint tray of the present invention may be easily mounted on the above said ladders in various positions, and the upright ladder may be moved while the paint tray is on the ladder with little likelihood of paint contained therein spilling. The cover members 30,61 and 71 coact with the pivot means 40' and 77 respectively to confine or contain the paint 8 within the paint trays 10,60 and 70 respectively. Also the paint trays 10,60,70,90 and device 91 include efficient, inexpensive tension means 50 and 84 and pivot means 40,77 for coupling and decoupling the paint tray to the ladder 11. The pivot means 40 supports the paint tray 10 on the rung 13 along one axis at the proximal end 25 and the tension means 50 supports the paint tray 10 along a longitudinal axis at the distal end 26 in many planes which traverse the rung 13. The same is also true for the pivot means 77 and the tension means 84. The pivot means 40,77,102 embrace or lock the paint tray 10,70 and insert device 91 to the rung 13 of the ladder 11 so that the paint trays 10 and 70 may be pivoted on the rung 13 by adjusting the tension means 50 or 84 with only one hand and therefore the other hand may be used to hold onto the ladder 1 1.

Referring now to FIGS. 12,12a,13-22 inclusive, a multi-use paint tray in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The aforesaid figures show various ways in which the tray 120 may be used such as for example in FIGS. 12 and the tray 120 may be used in various positions ranging from a horizontal position to a vertical position on a rung 121 of a ladder 122. The'ladder 122 is cut away to show details of the tray 120. In FIGS. 13,16 and'17 the tray 120 is shown ready for use in a vertical position and in FIG. 14 the tray 120 is shown on a step ladder 123 in a horizontal position, while in FIGS. 18 and 22 the tray 120 is also shown in the horizontal position for placement on a flat surface.

The multi-use paint tray 120 includes a longitudinal tray body or member 125 preferably molded as a unitary structure from plastic materials such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl, fiber glass and the like. The tray member 125 may of course be formed or fabricated of other materials such as aluminum, steel or other metals without departing from the invention. The tray member 125 has a pair of opposed right and left side walls 126, 127 respectively and a rear wall 128 which may. also serve as a bottom of the paint tray 120 when the painttray 120 is in a vertical position as shown in FIGS. 13,16,17.

The tray member 120 also includes a bottom wall 130 interposed between the right and left side walls 126 and 127 respectively. The bottom wall 130 includes an inclined base portion 136, a grid 132 and drainage ribs 131 for removing excess paint from a paint applicator (not shown) such as a paint roller. The grid 132 is used for containing paint therein for a flat applicator (not shown) and will be explained in more detail hereinafter. The grid 132 is particularly useful for the aforesaid flat type applicators which are well known to those skilled in the art and are more fully described in US. Pat. No. 3,369,266. The grid 132 includes xy ridges 133 which form shallow rectangular wells 134 for storing paint therein. The wells 134 are easily filled by tilting the paint tray 120 in the direction to make the paint flow into the wells 134 by gravity. The wells.134 may also be filled by a paint applicator which removes paint from the base portion 136. The grid 132 includes a wipe edge 135 along a lead edge. The wipe edge 135 is higher than the xy ridges to form a stop for the flat paint applicator so that the aforesaid flat applicator will rest and remain in the grid 132 when the paint tray 120 is in the horizontal position as shown in FIG. 12. The wipe edge 135 is also useful for wiping excess paint from the flat applicator. The flat applicator or paint roller heretofore mentioned may also be used to carry paint into the shallow wells 134 so that paint is readily available in the shallow wells 134 for the flat applicator.

The base portion 136 is inclined with respect to the bottom wall 130 so that when the base portion 136 rests on flat surface (not shown) the bottom wall 130 is inclined with respect to the flat surface and thus provides for the drainage of paint off the ribs 131. The base portion 136 is disposed at a distal end of the tray 120 while the grid 132 is disposed on a proximal end of the tray.

The tray member 125 also includes a front wall 137 connected to the bottom wall 130 and to the side walls 126 and 127. The front wall 137 includes a paint roller retainer 138. The retainer 138 includes a slot 139 located approximately at the center of the front wall 137 for receiving a shaft (not shown) of a paint roller. The retainer 138 serves as a holding device to keep the paint roller from falling towards the base portion 136 or distal end of the paint tray that normally is filled with paint.

The tray member also includes a cover or top wall 140 connected to the rear wall 128 and the side walls 126 and 127 and a rim 141 dispersed around the tray member 125 from the front wall 137 along the right'side wall 127 across the top wall 140 and along the left side wall 126 back to the front wall 137. The rim 141 is U-shape in cross-section as shown in FIGS. 17,21 and 22 and provide rigidity for the paint tray member 125 since the walls 126,127,128,130 and 140 are generally thin sections and therefore the tray member 125 is made substantially rigid by the addition of the rim 141. The rim 141 includes a reinforced portion 143 having a hole 144 through which a tension member or chain 143 may be inserted for the purpose described in conjunction with the paint tray of FIG. 1. The reinforced portion 143 includes struts 145,146 (FIG. 22) on each side of the hole 144 in the reinforced portion 143. Other struts 147 are uniformly disposed around the rim 141 to add necessary rigidity to the tray member 125.

Shown at 150 is a tension member such as a rope, cable or chain which supports the tray 120 in the various positions about the rung 121 as described in the paint tray 10 of FIG. 1. The tension member 150 can be connected at one end 151 to the rung 153 by a clasp 152 when desired to support the paint tray in the aforesaid position. The other end 154 of the chain 150 is coupled to the tray member 125 by passing the chain 150 through the hole 144 and connecting a hitch pin 155 at 154 of the chain 150 behind the reinforced portion 143. The chain 150 is shown twice in FIG. 12 to more clearly illustrate the details of the chain 150 and the structural elements by which it is connected to the rung 153 and the paint tray 120. It should be noted that the tension member or chain 150 is connected to the rung 153 which is higher than the rung 121 as aforesaid for. the paint tray 10 of FIG. 1. It should also be noted that the tension member or chain 150 may be omitted if the paint tray 120 is used on the step ladder 123 (FIG. 14) or in a vertical position (FIG. 13).

The paint tray 120 includes pivot means 180,180a mounted on the bottom wall 130 proximal to the front wall 137 but spaced from the rear wall 128 to permit rotation of the paint tray 120 about rung 121 when the ladder is upright against a vertical surface. The pivot means 180,180a comprises a pair of similar resilient legs 181,181a fixed to the bottom wall 130 as by fasteners 182,182a. Such fasteners 182,182a may for example be bolts and nuts; however, it should be understood that other means may be used for fastening the pivot means 180,180a to the tray member 125 without departing from the invention. The legs 181,181a include a flat portion 183,183a respectively contiguous to the bottom wall 130, a cantilevered, resilient, flexible curved portion 184,184a respectively spaced from the flat portion 183,183a respectively for slideably embracing a step of a step ladder 123 or rung 121 of the ladder 122. It should be understood that while a round rung 121 of the ladder 122 is shown the pivot means 180,180a may also be used with other types of rungs such as D rungs. The legs 181.1810 also include a locking pedestal 186,186a respectively whose function is to elevate the bottom 130 of the tray member 125 when the tray 120 is mounted on the step 185 of the step ladder 123. The locking pedestal 186,186a also functions as a locking member when the paint tray 120 is mounted on a rung 121 of a ladder since it is located opposite the curved portion 184,184a respectivelyof legs 181,181a respectively and therefore serves two purposes. The locking pedestal 186,186a acts as a stop against the rung 121 and thus the movement of the tray 120 on the rung 121 is limited by the locking pedestals 186,186a. The tray member 125 also includes a pair of guides 188,188a which prevent turning or twisting of legs 181,181a respectively. The guides 188,188a are raised from the bottom 130 and therefore shield the fasteners 182 from the rung 124 to prevent scratching by the fasteners. l

P In accordance with the present invention, the multiuse paint tray 120 includes a paint brush stowing means 200 for racking or stowing items, tools and paint brushes such as paint brush 201 away from the bottom wall 130 of the tray member 125. The stowing means 200 stows or racks the paint brush 201 in a manner in which it will be readily available in'various positions in which the paint tray 120 will be used.

The stowing means 200 includesa tray insert 202 which is supported across the tray member. 125 within the receptacle formed by the walls 126,127,140 and bottom wall 130. The side walls 126, 127 include grooves 203,203a for slideably receiving and supporting the tray insert 202. The tray insert 202 is generally rectangular in shape and includes a turned up edge 204 which acts as a stop and support for the paint brush 201 when the tray 120 is in the various positions. The tray insert includes drainage holes 210.

The tray insert 202 (FIG. 19) also includes a turned up edge 206 and a turned down edge 208 at opening 205 for the sidewise' passage of a paint brush 201 through the tray insert 202 so'that the brush 201 may be stowed or racked in the position shown in FIG. 14. The insert also includes slides 207,207a for guiding and strengthening the insert 202. The tray insert 202 is thus easily removed for cleaning. If desired, the tray insert 202 may be made of the same plastic material as the tray member 125 or the tray insert 202 may be: made of other materials such as wood or metal.

The paint tray 120 operates basically in the same manner as the paint trays 10 and 60, except that the paint tray 120 has additional features which provide for the stowing and racking of tools and paint brushes such as paint brush 201 away from the bottom wall 130 and its associated parts namely ribs 131 and grid 132. Another feature that the paint tray 120 has is the pivot means 180,180a which includes the resilient legs 181,181a and the locking pedestals 186,186a which provide for the easy mounting of the paint tray 120 on the rung 121 (FIG. 12) and the step 185 (FIG. 14). The locking pedestals 186,186a lock or trap the rung'12l in one direction while the legs 181,181a lock or trap the rung in the other necessary direction namely up or down and endwise. The locking pedestals 186,186a also function to elevate the bottom wall 130 of the tray 120 so that the proximal end or front end 137 of the tray 120 is raised above the deep portion or the base portion 136 of the bottom wall 130 so that paint will drain from the ribs 131 to the deep portion or the base portion 136.

. As was mentioned hereinbefore the .paint tray may be operated in the vertical position (FIGS. 13,16,17) by resting the paint tray 120 on the flat rear wall 128 so that the rear wall 128 acts as thebottom of the paint tray 120. In this vertical position, the stowing means 200 stows or racks the paintbrush 201 in the vertical position. The turned up edge 206 not only serves as a divider but also limits movement of the paint brush 201 so that it will not fall towards the bottom or turned up edge 204 of the tray insert 202.

The tray 120 may also be used in a horizontal (FIGS. 18, 22) position by resting the base portion 136 and legs 181,181a on a flat surface. In this horizontal position the receptacle formed by the side walls 126,127, the top wall 140 and the rear end wall 128 holds paint at a desired depth therein. Also, in this horizontal position, the stowing means 200 supports the paint brush 201 in a substantially horizontal position ready for use.- The paint brush 201 maybe longitudinally withdrawn from the stowing means 200 and may be inserted rapidly within the stowing means 200 by sliding the paint brush 201 sidewise through the opening 205 onto the insert or tray insert member 202. The sidewise in sertion of the paint brush 201 is desirable since the brush bristles are not damaged by this type of insertion rather than a straight-on approach. I

When the paint tray 120is in the horizontal position on a step ladder 123, the step 185 is disposed between the pedestal 186,186a and the resilient curved portion 184,184a of the legs 181,181a, so that the pedestal 186,186a elevate the front wall 137 with respect to the base portion 136 as aforesaid.

When the paint tray 120 is operated on a ladder 122 having rungs 121 into various positions as shown in FIGS. 12,15, the pivot means 1811,1800 slideably engage the rung 121 and the tension member supports the paint tray 120 from a rung 153 higher than the rung 121 which coacts with the pivot means 180, 180a. The paint tray 120 is interposed between the side rails 15,16 of the ladder 11 or of the ladder 122. To achieve the various positions of the paint tray'120 on the rung 121, the chain 150 is looped around the rung 153 at 151, and the clasp 152 is engaged with a link of the chain 150 in any onset the desired positions. At the other end of the chain 150 a hitch pin provides a locking arrangement between the chain 150 and the paint tray 120. The pedestal 186,186ais particularly desirable on the rung 121 of the ladder 122 since it provides a stop or safety device for limiting movement of the rung 121 within the curved portion 184,184a of the legs 181,181a.

The stowing means 200 provides the same function as aforesaid for the horizontal and vertical positions so that the paint brush 201 and other tools may be stowed therein and yet be kept away from the working surfaces of the bottom wall 130 namely base portion 136, ribs 131 and grid 132.

The paint tray 120 may be easily removed from the ladder 122 by releasing the clasp 152 fromthe chain 150 and freeing the chain from the rung 153. The pivot means 180,180a may be withdrawn from the rung 121 by raising the bottom wall 130 and pedestal 186,186a above the rung 121 and urging the resilient leg 181, 181a to yield and bypass the rung 121.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been described and shown, these may be considered ill060l2 OIZO lustrative. Still further modifications will undoubtedly occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the foregoing description is to be considered as illustrative and not in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A multi-use paint tray comprising:

a. a tray member having a receptacle which includes a top wall portion and a bottom wall portion diametrically opposed to said top wall portion and an opening therebetween;

b. 'said tray member; includes oppositely disposed side wall portions connected to said bottom wall portion and said top wall portion.

i. said oppositely disposed side wall portions include diametrically opposed grooves;

c. first means fixed to said bottom wall portion of said tray member for pivotally coupling said tray member to one rung of a ladder having a plurality of rungs so that said receptacle is supported for containing a liquid therein between horizontal and vertical positions of said tray member;

d. second means positioned in cooperative relationship with said first means for suspending said receptacle of said tray member in selected positions between said vertical and horizontal positions from another rung which is higher than said one rung when said second means is coupled thereto; and

e. paint brush stowing means interposed between said top wall portion and said bottom wall portion for stowing at least one paint brush between said brush stowing means and said top wall portion in readiness for painting in all of said selected positions of said tray member,

i. said paint brush stowing means being slideably insertable within said grooves for retaining said paint brush proximal to said top wall portion and distal to said bottom wall portion,

ii. said paint brush stowing means being supported by said oppositely disposed side wall portions.

2. The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said paint brush stowing means includes a tray insert having an opening between a turned up edge and a turned down edge for a sidewise passage of said paint brush therethrough and between said brush stowing means and said top wall portion. 

1. A multi-use paint tray comprising: a. a tray member having a receptacle which includes a top wall portion and a bottom wall portion diametrically opposed to said top wall portion and an opening therebetween; b. said tray member; includes oppositely disposed side wall portions connected to said bottom wall portion and said top wall portion. i. said oppositely disposed side wall portions include diametrically opposed grooves; c. first means fixed to said bottom wall portion of said tray member for pivotally coupling said tray member to one rung of a ladder having a plurality of rungs so that said receptacle is supported for containing a liquid therein between horizontal and vertical positions of said tray member; d. second means positioned in cooperative relationship with said first means for suspending said receptacle of said tray member in selected positions between said vertical and horizontal positions from another rung which is higher than said one rung when said second means is coupled thereto; and e. paint brush stowing means interposed between said top wall portion and said bottom wall portion for stowing at least one paint brush between said brush stowing means and said top wall portion in readiness for painting in all of said selected positions of said tray member, i. said paint brush stowing means being slideably insertable within said grooves for retaining said paint brush proximal to said top wall portion and distal to said bottom wall portion, ii. said paint brush stowing means being supported by said oppositely disposed side wall portions.
 2. The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said paint brush stowing means includes a tray insert having an opening between a turned up edge and a turned down edge for a sidewise passage of said paint brush therethrough and bEtween said brush stowing means and said top wall portion. 